Located at the corner of Washington and Watts Streets in North TriBeCa, the Fleming Smith Warehouse was commissioned in 1891 by merchant Fleming Smith and brought to life by architect Stephen Decatur Hatch (known for his work on the Princeton Club and the former New York Life Insurance Building).
The warehouse originally functioned as a shoe factory and wine storehouse. Its rugged elegance is evident from the ground up with a rusticated stone base, segmental arches, and symmetrically grouped windows made of rough granite, sandstone, and intricate brickwork. The Watts Street façade features a dramatic central copper-trimmed gable flanked by crow-stepped corners and decorative dormer windows.
Over the years, the building evolved along with Tribeca itself. In the late 1970s, it became the first commercial building in the neighborhood to be converted for residential use. The Fleming Smith Warehouse was Tribeca's first commercial-to-residential conversion in the late 1970s. In 2005, Scott Henson Architects completed a full façade restoration.
When we first set food inside the building, we knew we had something special. The place was layered with character. This building is a beautiful architecture, but it's also a piece of New York's history that we plan to continue and keep alive through our cohorts and events.
We discovered the building in 2021 and signed the lease not long after. Our vision was simple but ambitious: to create a fully participatory social club where members could pour their own drinks, cook together, and experience a space.
We even shared some early renders of the interior space as the buildout was just beginning. Looking back now, those images marked the starting line of what would become something far bigger than we imagined. Take a look down below!
